Getting business off the carpet: Four ways to help NYC job-creators survive

By Andrew Rigie, Jim Whelan, Randy Peers and Jessica Walker

New York Daily News|

Apr 28, 2020 | 5:00 AM

Save our businesses. (Mark Lennihan/AP)

With so many questions about how and when we’ll be able to reopen the economy, dark clouds hang over New York City’s small business community. The government interventions to support small businesses so far at the local, state and federal levels have all been steps in the right direction, but much more relief is urgently needed.

Bold policies are necessary now more than ever to ensure that local restaurants and retailers forced to close by the government shutdown have the resources they need to reopen as life and commerce in the city inch back to a new “normal,” and that neighborhood restaurants, cafes and eateries in operation during the shutdown survive long enough to see the end of the tunnel.

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Last week, we presented what we call a Blueprint to Save Small Business to Gov. Cuomo and New York’s other elected officials. Our policy package entails fixing the Paycheck Protection Program in the federal stimulus, extending business interruption insurance to cover the COVID-19 pandemic, injecting cash into businesses through potentially converting sales tax into grants and direct financial assistance for rent and mortgages for the duration of the shutdown.

While the Paycheck Protection Program was well-intentioned, to obtain the forgivable loans that small businesses desperately need, businesses’ employee headcount must be approximately the same two months after the loan is originated, as it was before the pandemic hit.

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This is next to impossible for the owner of a restaurant or retail shop who doesn’t know if they will be allowed to reopen at capacity in June. Therefore, the timeline to rehire staff for the loan to become forgivable must be amended for a minimum of six months.

Another measure that will provide immediate relief is ensuring valid business interruption insurance claims related to COVID-19 be paid, or establishing a specialized recovery fund to promptly pay claims to businesses that have been required, by government order, to close or limit their operations.

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We recognize the state and city both face significant budgetary constraints. But we recommend investigating the fiscal implications of converting restaurants, nightlife establishments and retail stores’ sales tax collection into cash grants for small businesses that need an immediate injection of funds if we expect to return to them after the pandemic clears. Deny them this kind of aid, and commercial strips across the city will soon become ghost towns.

The fourth provision pertains to real estate, one of the most long-standing and reliable economic drivers for New York City. The majority of businesses have been mandated by the government to close or limit their operations, and many therefore cannot pay their rent. Property owners have financial obligations including property taxes, mortgages, maintenance and capital improvements — much of which is paid for by the rent from businesses.

While we recommend that commercial tenants and property owners come to private arrangements per their circumstances to help both parties weather this crisis, we recognize that realistic terms may not always be available. Therefore, we recommend direct government support is provided for rent and mortgage payments during this emergency.

These policies have earned the support of a diverse group of business organizations and advocates, including the New York State Restaurant Association, the Chambers of Commerce from all five boroughs, the NYC BID Association, Tech:NYC, the Greenwich Village Chelsea Chamber of Commerce and the New York State Latino Restaurant, Bar & Lounge Association. We’re not pitting one sector against another, but collectively crying out for help.

If these critical measures to revamp New York’s economy are enacted soon, together we can resuscitate ailing small businesses, provide a lifeline to millions of workers and bring life back to our neighborhoods.

Rigie is executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance. Whelan is president of the Real Estate Board of New York. Peers is president and CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. Walker is president and CEO of the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce.